The Hanged Man
by Amber Masquerade
Summary: "I like the visitors coming in to live with me, but...I want to leave myself and live outside! But unless I take the place of someone from the outside, it seems like I can't do that...Won't somebody come soon?" This takes place BEFORE Mary met Ib and Garry, and instead meets a young boy who ignites new feelings within her. A story of love, loss, and tragedy.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hooray! Amber's first Ib story. I've been planning this one out for a long time now because I love this game to bits. Just to clear up the confusion, this story revolves around Mary and another boy, takes place BEFORE she met Ib and Garry, and this boy is NOT an OC of mine. He is not an actual character of Ib. He's just some guy I created to fit the story. This is a love story btw. That is all. Now enjoy~**

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_"I like the visitors coming in to live with me, but...I want to leave myself and live outside! But unless I take the place of someone from the outside, it seems like I can't do that... Won't somebody come soon? Won't somebody come soon..."_

* * *

She hated how they left her. Every time, every person who ever came to visit her in her secret museum, carrying a rose that symbolized their life, would always try to escape. Somehow, they always managed to bump into her on the way to escaping, and she would try to aid their distress. She wanted them to stay so badly though. But every time she tried to convince them, she would get the same answer: no.

She learned about the outside from their stories they used to tell and the books that Guertena left behind, but that wasn't enough. Even though she didn't need actual sunlight or food or water, even though she had everything she needed, she still felt empty. Even the dolls, her so-called "friends," who were loyal to her and only her. They couldn't fill her void. Even though she was surrounded by an over-familiar environment with mannequins and statues that were at her beck and call, she still felt there was something lacking. When would she finally find a real friend, who had warm blood running through his or her veins and a beating heart?

Mary used to watch, overcome with loneliness, as people who would accidentally stumble upon her secret world and try to escape it. She swore to herself that she'd never make contact with them. She'd hide herself away because she would only miss them even more if she didn't. She couldn't stand it. The feeling of being alone, of being left behind. So she locked her heart away.

But then, on one particular day with one particular visitor she was changed for the first time ever.

She was just wandering around the museum as she usually did. She knew every puzzle, every trick, every turn. The statues and Ladies in Red would make way for her. Absent-mindedly fiddling with the fake petals of her rose while walking down the purple hallways from the deeper part of the world, she suddenly hears a frightened scream. It sounded like it came from around the corner. Sticking to her instinct and the promise she made to herself, Mary ducked behind a large statue and peeked over the side. She spotted a boy, panting and running away from the maze with the statues in them and paintings with buttons.

He stopped and checked behind his shoulder frantically, leaning forward with his hands on his shaking knees. After a moment of heavy breaths, he straightened his back. Mary couldn't make out his face from afar. He fumbled with something long from his pants pocket and took it out, examining it carefully and worriedly. It was still too far away for her to identify the object. He started to advance forward slowly with a slight limp in his step, towards where she hid.

The boy looked around cautiously and turned left to stare at a painting on the wall in front of him: "Milk Puzzle." Now, his features were clearer to her.

He had a gentle expression that was aided by his short chestnut brown hair that looked like it'd been tussled with and pale white face with round cheeks that looked as if he could easily form smile. His eyes, a deep sky-blue, were weary and exhausted. His white shirt was torn at the sides a bit and his jeans were dirtied with marks. The boy's hands were down at his sides, and in one was a rose with only a few fading lavender petals. The museum had seemingly taken its toll him.

He sighed and stared at the milk puzzle intently, as if he were recalling a fond memory and turned away. The full view of his face came into sight. She let out the slightest gasp of air. It caught his attention and he jolted around. Mary shriveled up in her corner, trying her best to disappear. Her heart drummed away in her chest and her face began to get hot. The boy began to limp slowly across the room and towards the pedestal that she was hiding behind, and grasped his rose tightly against his chest to protect what little amount purple petals were left hanging from their bud, barely holding on. She held her breath. "Who's there?" His voice deep enough to match his age and soft and kind, but she could tell he was trying to make it sound more aggressive. "Hello?"

Suddenly, the statue that hid her rumbled to life. Startled, Mary stumbled forward in the middle of the hallway floor. "Ow!" She cried. She looked up and found the boy staring down at her in disbelief, and picked herself up off the ground, holding a false rose against her pounding chest. He was taller than she thought. His gaze turned from bewilderment to immediate relief.

The boy sighed happily. "Phew, I thought I was the only one here!"

"Uh...um..." she was speechless. The statue rumbled violently behind her and she felt a hand grab hers.

"Be careful!" He said and tugged her to his side as the artwork came to life and approached them. "Theses things are everywhere!" Mary grasped his hand in total shock. It was so warm. She'd never felt this warmth before. "Let's get outta here." He took her by the hand and led them elsewhere. Mary still was at a loss for words. "Over here in this room."

While he rested, she observed him. "Heh...that was close..." he breathed and stood up. "It's nice not to be alone again. What's your name? How did you end up here? I didn't see you before."

"I'm...Mary..." She croaked, averting her eyes and clutching her plastic rose to her heart while butterflies awakened and fluttered around in her tummy. "Um...I've been trying to escape, too..." At least she wasn't lying.

He offered her a weak smile that was still warmer than her artificial sun. "Hmm...well, whatever. My name is Akira."

"N-nice to meet you," she nearly stammered.

"So what happened to you?" He asked. "How'd you end up in this crazy situation too?"

"Well...I got stuck here and I can't seem to find a way out..." she answered.

"Same thing here. I was taking a casual field trip with my class until suddenly the lights flickered while I was taking a look at this giant rose sculpture...and the next thing I knew, the whole place was empty. Oh yes, how's your rose doing? Didn't you get one when you first came here too?" The top of Mary's head reached the height of his chest, so he bent down to examine her flower. "It seems fine. Well, I can't say the same thing for me..." he gazed down at his delicate light purple rose whose petals were limply hanging from the bud. "I have a feeling something bad will happen if all the petals fall...I mean, each time one falls off, I've been getting injuries," he continued. "But as long as yours is okay, then I'm glad."

Her cheeks pinked. "Oh...Um! I know a spot where your rose can be restored back to health." She led him out of the room and passed the mirror placed on the wall. With the slightest side-glance at their image, she could've sworn she saw a giant red 'X' crossing out his face. He didn't seem to notice. Unnerved, she tried to push it to the back of her mind. But she knew it was a warning sign of the things to come.

She carefully dropped the wilting rose into the jar of water, and it slowly began to perk up and so did he. Newly formed petals spurted from the core of the flower, fresh and healthy. The boy watched in amazement as his wounds healed all around his body. "Wow, if only I'd known that sooner. Thanks, you're a lifesaver." Mary handed it back to him shyly, informing him that the condition of his rose meant life or death. "How about yours?"

"Mine is fine, see?" She raised it up to him and he caught of whiff of its scent.

"That's funny, I thought roses were supposed to smell good," he said. "And yours doesn't seem to have a scent, and I'm sure mine has."

She panicked. "Oh! I guess mine is different than other roses."

"Hm. Oh well. I guess we have nothing else to do but keep going. You're coming too, right?" He started forward through the next hallway.

She trotted over to his side. "Yeah!" Maybe there was a way of finally getting out for her...

She thought to herself quietly as she walked, until Akira's voice broke the silence. "So, Mary, how old are you?" She answered. "Only nine? You're pretty young to be in a crazy place like this. You must be brave."

"Brave?"

"Yeah, it means you're not afraid of everything. You're strong. That's why you're still standing."

"R-really? I don't think I've ever been called brave before..." she felt a hotness creep up her cheeks so she changed the subject. "How old are you?"

"Fifteen." He stayed silent as they ascended a flight of stairs. "I just wanna get out of here and see my mom and dad again, and my friends, too. Don't you?"

"What is it like? To have a mom and dad?" She asked.

"Well, sometimes they can be a bit too overbearing on you, but at the same time you know they love you, you know? Why do you ask?"

She didn't answer.

"Oh," he said, clearing his throat. "Never mind then." He trotted up the last few steps of stairs. In front of them were two paths, separated by a wall with a painting of a thorny rose.

"What's it like outside?" Mary asked after a moment of quietness.

"Well," he began. "Since you're young you still have a lot to see. Well, where should I start?"

"How about the weather?" She suggested with eagerness and yearning. "What does it feel like when it rains?"

"Rain? You get all wet. But then there's snow, where the rain is frozen and soft. It's cold."

"Snow?" Mary led him to the room on the left.

"Yeah, it melts when you touch it. But when it covers everything around you it's a really pretty sight to see. Plus you get to make snowmen."

He grabbed the knob and turned it. "Is it fun to make snowmen?"

"A lot of fun." Inside the room, a large collection of her dolls were waiting, positioned on their shelves. "Woah!" He jumped back in surprise. "Why...?"

One of the dolls to Mary's side giggled creepily. It was glaring at the boy. Looking around, she could see all of them, their bulbous red eyes glaring straight at him. Even the giant painting of doll was focused on him. He didn't pay attention to them, though. "Hey Mary, take a look at these cute teddy bears!" He didn't even know they were creepy little dolls. He picked one up and showed it to her.

The doll tilted its head at her, and she understood what it was trying to say. _Make him stay with us, Mary. We'll have so much fun together! All three of us..._

She could see through their words a much deeper, sinister reason. _Make him stay forever...we never have to stop playing...__  
_

"Stop it," she commanded the doll and it frowned.

"Hm? Who are you talking too?" Akira gave her a puzzled look. She grabbed the doll for him and smiled.

"Nothing!" She answered quickly. _Mary_...it whispered to her. _Why are you being so mean to us? Don't you love us too? Do you like him more than us?_

"Well, I don't think there's much in this room...why don't we move on?" Akira said as he wandered around. Their glares intensified at him.

_Mary...we don't like being ignored..._

"Hey! We should move to the next room, right?" She said and grabbed his hand and left. _  
_

The dolls did this every time she tried to make a new friend from one of the visitors. Mary knew now that he wasn't safe here. Soon, they'd be after him.

She didn't want to lose her first friend.

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**A/N: I know, I know, Mary's really OOC in this one. But it gets better, I promise. What do you guys think? Leave a review!**

**~Amber**


	2. Chapter 2

She grabbed his hand and hurriedly led him to the other room across the hall, away from the oncoming danger. Akira asked, "Have you been here before, Mary? You seem to know where you're going."

"Well, I've been here for quite a while..." She involuntarily started to open the boxes that lay all around the tiny room they were in. Akira stood in front of an empty canvas and searched around with her.

"It feels like I've been here for an eternity. In fact, I've completely lost my track of time. I mean, it was only this morning that I got trapped here," he said and opened a cardboard box that revealed a palette knife. "Hey, what's a thing like this doing in here?" He picked it up and swiped at the air. "Well, it's pretty useless if you wanna defend yourself..." He set it back in the box. "When did you get stuck in here?"

Mary paused and aimed her eyes towards the ground. "I dunno...I don't remember."

"Hm...I wonder if our loved ones miss us..." he said sadly and faced her sullen gaze.

"I don't think anyone in the real world misses me," Mary admitted and picked up a heavy box filled with art tools.

"Huh? You talk like you've never made a friend before."

"Actually...I haven't..."

He was surprised. "And why not? You seem like a good friend. You're nice, kind, and you're pretty..." He caught himself mid-sentence while Mary's face blew up red like a tomato.

"P-Pretty?!" She nearly dropped the box and almost scattered the contents inside, stuttering as she stumbled back clumsily into the hoard of cardboard behind her.

He smiled modestly and chuckled. "Ah...sorry, I slipped up my words. I didn't mean to make you so nervous all of a sudden, but that's what I think."

She struggled to pick herself off the floor and Akira offered to help her, but she refused, dusting the dirt off her dark green dress. As her blush started to fade, she regained her balance and answered, "Sorry..." she murmured quietly. "No one's ever called me that."

"Well, I'm glad I'm the first," he answered. "Um, we should keep moving."

"R-right!" Akira pushed the headless statue that blocked the door and they advanced on, deeper into the museum. Mary already knew every twist and turn that came their way and every puzzle that the maze presented, which made him grow more impressed at her.

Mary continued fearlessly through the maze while he twitched and nervously eyed each painting they passed, as if it was going to jump at him. It was a highly likely possibility it would, anyways. "Hey, Akira..." she asked as they examined a familiar painting of a woman without an umbrella. "What will you do when you're finally able to leave here?"

He peered at the woman with a saddened expression. "Dunno. Maybe I could go for some ice cream or something."

"Yeah...I wanna do that too..."

"What are you favorite flavors?" He asked. "Mine is chocolate."

"I've never had chocolate before. What does it taste like?"

"It's sweet, I guess. You can't really describe it unless you taste it yourself. I know! I'll buy you some chocolate ice cream as soon as we get outta here," he smiled.

She attempted a smile, but it only made her feel worse. "Really?"

"Yeah, sure! There's this great place that sells all kinds of ice cream flavors. I haven't even tried most of them yet..." he continued. "Maybe we could try them all together."

Mary finally found the strength to force a smile on her face as they walked away from the painting and trudged down a long corridor. "I would really like that."

They stopped at a vase to heal their roses just in case. "Man, I think I'd be dead without you by my side," he exclaimed with relief as Mary dipped her rose into the rejuvenating water and it didn't change. "I'm hopeless, aren't I?" He chuckled and they entered the room right next to them, a room with a small fruitful tree at the top. Mary froze when she stepped into the mini-library. "What's wrong?"

"I...um, I don't think there's anything here that we need to see!" She tried to hurry out the door, but Akira tugged her sleeve.

"Why not? I think we should check every book in here; it might give us a hint on how to get out," he suggested.

"But I don't think we'll find anything here!" She insisted. "Besides, I get a bad feeling in here, so we should just leave!"

"C'mon, Mary. I don't think that's a good idea. Why don't you wait outside while I check, okay?"

"N-no!" She cried and grabbed his hand desperately. "Let's leave!"

He pulled back from her, startled by her sudden change in mood. "What's wrong? Why are you so worried about this room?"

She calmed herself down. "I just don't think we should be here. It's a waste of time."

"It wouldn't hurt to check, though," he reasoned and she let go of his hand, seeing that it was hopeless to stop him. He was one glance away from finding out her secret.

"Don't, Akira...please..."

"Let's see this book here first..." he picked it from its shelf and skimmed through the pages while Mary stood frozen in her place. After a moment, he set it down back in its place. "Nothing there, I guess." She watched him move on to the next shelf and shifted nervously on one foot to another, begging silently for him to stop. He opened the next book and began to flip through its pages as she waited nervously. She jumped when he gasped suddenly. "Hey, Mary, look! There's some weird green ball on the floor." He dropped the book and bent down, and she came over to him with relief.

"I think it's paint," she said and picked it up. She cradled the little ball in her hand, but it started to levitate from her palm and then flew out the door. "We should follow it!"

They hurried out the room, to her relief. Her secret would be safe for now. But it was only a matter of time. They trailed the fast moving ball to the other side of the room, where it disappeared in front of a door. Upon opening it, they observed a group of pedestals that had nothing on top of them, and the green ball floating over one. It set itself down on one of the surfaces as they approached it. "I wonder if there are other balls just like this one," Akira said.

"I think we should look for them, then."

They split up. Mary would look on the right side and he would look on the left. The fact that she would be away from him worried her, even though she knew he was most likely safe in this room. The dolls wouldn't dare come after her, but they certainly wouldn't mine coming after him. After all, their home was very close by...

Akira shouted to her that he had found a pink and blue ball and she had already found two herself. There was only one more ball left. She wandered around to a painting of a clown on a unicycle who juggled colored balls, and he gave her a smile from his frame. "Evening, Mary," he said.

She turned around and saw that the boy was preoccupied. "Um, can I borrow a yellow ball of yours?" She whispered to the painting, and a yellow ball of paint materialized next to her foot. "Thanks! Hey, Akira!" She plucked it from the ground and swiftly turned around, but he was nowhere in sight. "Akira? Where'd you go?" He was just across the room a moment ago, but now he was gone.

She started to walk towards here he was until a sharp, chilly breeze hit her and she halted immediately. A chill ran down her spine and she nearly dropped the ball of paint as she located the source of the eerie wind.

The door to their home was slightly ajar, and Akira was not around.

"Akira!" She cried and ran towards the door and pushed against it. It wouldn't budge. "Akira!" She called again, but he didn't answer. "C'mon, open!" She rammed her shoulder into the door and pushed at the freezing cold doorknob, and heard the dolls' whispers from the inside. They had found him.

Finally, when the door gave through and she stumbled into the room, she was met with a barrage of glowering red-eyed glares from the dolls who she used to call 'friends.' She picked herself up and saw him standing in front of the giant painting. He stood completely still, as if her were mesmerized by the sight of the gargantuan doll slowly arising into its frame and reaching out to grab him "Akira!" Her cry didn't seem to reach his ears. She picked up her feet and made a desperate sprint for him.

Slowly, the doll stretched out a hand to touch his face and he still did not budge. The others giggled with delight, as they knew they were about to acquire a new friend. It's prickly plush finger rose out of the one-dimensional frame of paper and came towards him, attempting to caress his face, until...

"NO!" The girl screamed, latching around his waist the pulling him backwards onto the ground. The giant looked confused at her actions. Akira and her fell on the ground and the jolt shook him awake.

"Huh...?" He started to break away from his hazy state and held his head. "What the?"

The painting roared with anger and broke away from the paper and lunged at them while the other smaller dolls growled and eyed them angrily. _Mary?! Why did you steal him away from us? We only wanted to have fun with him!_ They said through their whispers. Mary struggled to get to her feet under Akira's weight, yelling his name. "Akira! Please, get up!" She grabbed under his arms and hauled him back, making the doll miss within just a few inches of his leg as it lunged at them. "Please!" The dazed fifteen-year-old was too heavy to carry for the nine-year-old. With a maniacal grin, both of its hands steadied themselves against the boundaries of its framed painting, and it pushed itself towards them. _Let us have him!_ It snarled. "N-Never!" With the last ounce of her strength, Mary managed to drag him out of its grasp and close to the door. She was so close now to escaping. "Wake up, please!" She begged him and tried to lift him off the floor, but Akira seemed completely disoriented. She knew she wouldn't have enough power to carry him out the door. "Akira!" The doll was almost upon then, climbing out of its paint prison while its friends spectated the show, laughing with evil glee. "Please!" Even though the low half of its body was still stuck to the wall, it roared and grinned while red liquid seeped from its maw and drooled all over the ground below as its hands dragged it forwards to the fallen girl and boy.

"Hm...?" Akira regained control of his conscious and jerked his head up. Right above him was a colossal plush with crazed crimson eyes and dark blue skin, its arm reared for an attack. He felt a weak yank of his arms from behind and saw Mary, on the verge of tears, pulling at him towards the door that was not too distant behind them. He scrambled to his feet and grabbed the startled girl, dashing out of the door and pulling it shut behind him, heaving in shallow breaths to calm himself down.

Mary collapsed on the ground next to him, half crying and half hyperventilating. He swiped her up on his shoulder and made a panicked run away from the room. They settled against the wall, struggling to take in breaths, struggling to absorb what had just happened to them. "Are...you...okay...?" He asked her as she calmed down.

"Akira..." she whimpered and fell into his chest, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. She was almost sobbing.

Too tired to acknowledge that she was hugging him, he involuntarily answered back by bringing her in against his chest. "Don't worry..." he said gently. "I think it's over now. I'm sorry...I went into that room without thinking...I didn't know they were waiting for me. I just...I lost my train of thought and everything, I didn't know what I was doing anymore. Like I couldn't control my body. Next thing I knew, I heard you distantly calling my name. You brought me back. Thanks for saving me, Mary."

She sniffed as she buried her tear-streaked face in the middle of his bosom. "I thought I was gonna lose you, Akira...It was so scary..."

He offered an exhausted smile. "I'm sorry I worried you. I promise I won't do anything stupid like that again, okay?"

She nodded with a muffled sniff.

"I'll always be at your side from now on, Mary. Next time, _I'll_ be the one protecting you."

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**A/N: Just for future reference, if you're wondering why the puzzles are messed up in order it's because I'm gonna assume that the museum's layout changes. **

**Anyways, I wrote this story because I really love Mary's character. I know it's gonna sound weird, but I really wish people (ahem, mainly fangirls) wouldn't hate on her so much, because if you honestly look deeper into her situation and her personality, she's not as bad as everyone says she is. Honestly, she really just wants a friend and a hug or something. I feel like I understood her more on a personal level because at some point in our lives, we've all experienced loneliness and a yearning for a friend. Seriously, my heart cries for this girl and I really hate it when she gets bashed for being desperate for a friend. Well, that's just my opinion, no hate is needed. **

**~Amber**


	3. Chapter 3

"I'll always be at your side from now on, Mary. Next time, I'll be the one protecting you." He sat up slowly and propped the crying young girl upwards on her knees. "Okay? You don't have to cry anymore."

As her sobs weakened and died down, she managed to nod. "Okay..."

He let out a soft chuckle and pat the top of her blonde head with affection. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said, wiping away the last of her tears.

"That's good." Slowly, the both of them composed themselves and rose, even though the air that surrounded them felt cold and hostile. "I think we should get out of here as soon as possible." She nodded in agreement. "Hey look, that door wasn't open before, was it?"

Akira cautiously pushed the door open, and another stairway led up and to another corridor. Trudging up the flight, both remained silent, still slightly shocked about what had just happened. Upon opening the door all the way at the top, they discovered a whole other maze to go through. "Wonderful," he muttered. "Now where do we go from here?" He walked around to each painting to find a clue, but Mary already knew what had to be done. She slipped her hand behind of the paintings and flicked a switch that activated a door farther away. The click resonated throughout the maze and sounded in both their ears. "Did you hear that?" he asked. "I think I just heard a click."

"Yeah, I did too!" She said and came to his side. "I think we should go this way now."

"I hope we're almost there now. I mean, we've been in here for a while, and I guess this museum can't go on forever, can it?"

"I would know..." Mary said under her breath.

"I hope it ends soon. Then we can finally get out, right?"

"Y-yeah, I wanna get out soon, too," she said. "I really wanna feel what real sunlight is, and what snow feels like..."

He smiled. "And then we can try that awesome ice cream place I promised I'd take you to," he laughed to lighten the mood as they walked. His laughter was cut short as he heard something heavy being dragged along the floor just around the corner. _It's probably one of those statues stationed here_, Mary thought. _There's always danger around every corner._

When she peeked over the corner, she was met by a sight that she did not expect at all. Instead of only one lingering headless statue, there were many, walking around with dragging footsteps that scraped across the floor. Akira sighed and she bit her lip. There weren't supposed to be this many statues in this area, were there? She'd been through this passageway many times, but there was only one standing in the corner, even when there were visitors inside. Was is because she had just betrayed her friends?

"Damn...they're in our way. I don't think there's any way we'd sneak past," he said sadly, fisting the wall quietly next to him. "What do you think we do now?"

She thought quietly to herself, only slightly worried. "I don't know...maybe we can distract them somehow?" She suggested.

"That's a good idea. But how?" He glanced around for something, but there was nothing but an empty hallway with paintings of random household items hung around the wall. One particular picture caught his attention: the picture of a silver spatula, its handle jutting out from the paper. He reached for it and pulled it from the wall. "What about this?"

"What are you gonna do with that?" She asked.

Akira's face lit up with an idea as he looked around the corner again. "Watch." he raised his spatula-holding hand and threw it across the hall, over their heads. It landed far away from them with a loud resonating metallic clang. He held his breath and waited for them to take notice. Slowly, the pathway cleared of statues who wandered away to inspect the noise like zombies. He waved to her and they both snuck behind the distracted crowd and into a room that was seemingly empty, except for a small mirror in the back. It only showed her face in its reflection. Had this been here before? She'd never seen it in this room, which was usually empty.

Why were so many things changing around the museum without her knowing it?

It alarmed the young girl and it was shown through her troubled expression. "What's wrong?" He asked, placing a guiding hand on her shoulder. Mary gave a nervous jerk, shaking his hand off her.

"N-nothing! I'm just...I'm still a little shaken about what just happened. I'm fine, I swear - "

His movements were so quick and smooth that she didn't notice his arms wrapping around her, holding her firmly to his chest. "If you're scared, that's okay," he said.

She reached up slowly and grasped her sleeve while the side of her head resting against his bosom. "Thank you," she answered. Somehow she felt more distant from him even as they got closer, because she knew that she'd never be able to hug him in the real world like he was doing now. She started to cry, not because she was grateful of his embrace, but because she would never be able to hug him back, because she knew she'd never be able to feel his warmth ever again, because he'd have to live with a broken promise that he most likely would not remember after this ordeal. She cried and he hugged her tighter, which made the tears even more painful. She sobbed even more when he started to comfort her with his gentle words, knowing that she'd never hear them again, knowing that it would become nothing but a distant memory in her head after he was gone.

He wondered why she couldn't stop. He tried everything he knew, he'd even use it to calm down his little sister. He'd sit her down and tell her a bedtime story, and wait until she fell asleep. "Hey, Mary, do you want to hear an old story I used to tell? I think it'll make you feel better." She nodded into his chest. "Well, there once was this little girl. She used to travel around with her older sister. One day as they were wandering around in the woods, they began to play a game of hide-and-seek. It was younger sister's turn to look for the older sister. So, she counted to ten with her eyes closed, and turned around to find her. The girl searched for a long time. She looked behind every bush and every tree, but she still couldn't find her. The girl wondered where she could be, but she never gave up. She kept searching, even though she was tired, even though her feet ached from all that walking, until the sun began to set over the horizon. She began to worry about her older sister, if she was lost or had fallen asleep while she hid. So she called, called really loudly into the forest so she could hear her. She said, 'I give up! I've been trying and trying and trying, but I can't seem to find you. You win.' Then, there was a sudden rustle in the bushes behind her, and her sister emerged. She laughed and told her younger sister that she had been quietly following her from behind wherever she went instead of staying put and hiding. The younger sister started to bawl, saying how worried she was about her. You wanna know what she said next?"

"Yeah..." Mary sniffed.

"She said that if she ever were to get lost or sad, she'd always be one step away; the younger sister would just have to look harder. I know, it's a stupid story, but my little sister used to like it a lot."

Mary lifted her head as a tear raced down the side of her face, tracing the outline of her cheek. "I didn't think it was stupid..."

"I'm glad. My little sister thought it was, though," he laughed.

"You had a little sister?"

"Yup. You remind me of her so much. I just wish I could tell her that story again..." he said sadly. "I think you'd like her. She's really nice, like you!"

She nodded thankfully, but still saddened. Too bad she'd never get to meet the nice girl that he was talking about. She looked around for anything, but there was nothing around except for the mirror. "Thanks for the story."

"No problem." They finally let go of each other, not knowing what to say anymore. "We have to keep going. What's this room about?"

There was nothing in there but that strange mirror. Mary peered in it closer, while Akira stood behind her. "Why is this in here?" She wondered to herself. She never saw it before. In the reflection, there was only her and his face, an it seemed awfully suspicious.

Akira was about to speak, until there was a sudden rumble on the outside, like a stampede rushing past the room. The floor trembled and the mirror shook from where it hung. Mary grabbed on to him to keep herself from falling. The shaking lasted for a few seconds, and then it was gone, leaving the two to wait and wonder in fear. "Are they...did they find us?" Akira asked hesitantly.

She sucked in her breath and snuck over to the door. Akira motioned for her to come back, but she turned the knob and opened the door slightly. With one of her eyes, she scanned the hallway for the mob. There was nothing there, not even a sound. "Where are they?" She whispered to herself. She slowly closed the door and shrugged at Akira. "There's nothing there..."

"Huh? But there was shaking and everything...I think it's still not safe out there, though. We should stay here for a bit until we're both really sure that there's nothing to get us," he suggested. With nothing else to do, she turned back to the mirror, but as they both had their backs turned, the mirror had cracked. It seeped with red paint that had dripped from the slit and down to the floor and stained the wall. The liquid seemed to be boiling with rage. She reached out a finger, and smeared it against her hand. It came to life, swishing around against the wall, streaking in random directions. She gasped and Akira grabbed her, pulling her away from the wall.

When the paint died down and became lifeless once again, they both were startled. There were words written on the wall with the color of blood:

NO SADNESS. NO PAIN. NO ESCAPING.

A simultaneous gasp escaped their lips as they scrambled backwards from the wall. "What's that?" Akira asked, startled and worried after seeing the eerie message. "Never mind this, I think we have to leave here!" He pulled the confused girl up to her feet and hurriedly rushed out the door. A sudden rumbling filled their ears, once again.

They turned around to find an entire hallway-filling army of statues and floating dolls with their arms outstretched, barreling down towards them.


	4. Chapter 4

"R-Run!" He yelled at her and pushed her forward down the narrow pathway. There was a roaring sound in her ear as the statues behind them were rushing towards them. She made a successful grab for his hand as they scrambled down the seemingly endless pathway. "I think there's a clearing up ahead! Let's hurry!" He was right; up ahead lay a large room with unmoving statues and white-headed mannequins that eyed them with malicious glares. Ahead of that room was a large stair case that led to multiple upstairs rooms. "You think we can make it fast enough to get into one of those rooms?" He asked her out of breath, and she nodded.

The things behind them were catching up slowly. Women with their legs trapped in their paintings were clawing at the ground to catch up to them, and metal black statues that lacked head and wore short dresses came at them with outstretched arms.

Mary forced her legs to pick up speed as they stumbled up the stairs together, the hoard not far behind them. Suddenly, she felt Akira's hand jerk backwards. "Akira! We have to go!" She tugged him back up the stairs, but she noticed that his eyes were glued elsewhere. She gasped. On the very bottom of the steps, lying in wait to get trampled on, was a small yellow rose that had slipped out from her pocket. "No...don't!" His hand left hers as he ran down the steps to retrieve the fallen flower, but the statues were already at the entrance of the rooms. "Akira!"

He bent down to snatch it, but the statues were already upon him. In desperation, she sprinted down to him and knocked herself into a metallic hand that was about to grab his shirt. A woman in red from a painting wrapped her hand around his ankle, but he managed to shake it off. He picked up the little blonde by her waist and attempted to carry her up the stairs. The other statues reached out for him and eventually managed to snatch his wrists and ankles. He was pulled back into the crowd, but they weren't hurting him nor were aiming for his rose. He dropped Mary and she scurried to her feet as they surrounded her. "Run Mary, RUN!" Akira screamed at her, held back by the statues's grips.

"I...I can't leave you here!" She cried back, deciding that it was too late for her to run anyways. She tried to reach to him, but then they were upon her too.

The statues encircled her and trapped her like a wild animal. Their arms were jutted outward from their bodies and aimed at her. She grew terrified of the things she used to call 'friends' as they surrounded her and closed in, until she fell back and landed on a step. She heard their whispers: Traitor...traitor...traitor...

Wide-eyed, she shouted at them to go away, but they continued. Suddenly, she felt something cold and hard wrap around her neck and hoist her up towards the ceiling.

Traitor...

A headless statue had its hand, solid and metallic, gripped around her throat, crushing her windpipe. Mary struggled to choke in air and her vision blurred.

Traitor...

"A...Aki...ra..." she begged silently, desperately, with her last gulp of air. The statue squeezed tighter, its cold and feelingless fingers digging into the sides of her nape. Her world started to spin and appear in flashes of white in between blackness. She knew she would lose consciousness soon.

"Mary!" She heard a distant voice scream. Akira pulled and pushed their hands away, thrashing in their grip. "Let GO!" He growled and shook them off his shoulders for a split second, allowing him to launch himself at the monsters who held her. He crashed into the statue that was holding her to the ceiling and it dropped her and let out a low growl.

He scooped her up in her arms and, with all the might he could summon, propelled himself with his legs up the stairs and into a room with large double-sided doors. He slammed it behind him and took a chair and leaned its top against the door right under the handles, preventing the door or the door knobs from being turned or opened. Exhausted, he collapsed with the unconscious girl in his arms.

* * *

She awakened to the sound of his gentle breath skimming across the back of her neck. Her neck ached badly. She thought that if she looked in a mirror she would be able to see the bruises, or even hand prints. Mary cocked her head upwards a found that they were in a large white room that looked completely different than the museum itself. Its texture was different in that it looked like a child's coloring books; the walls were completely white and the outline of the walls were drawn in with a pink raggedy crayon, and the bookshelf and table casted no shadows on the ground. It was just plain 2D. It was her world that she created right from her box of crayons.

She tilted her head back and saw Akira's unconscious face leaning down towards her. She shook his shoulders to rouse him. "Wake up...please."

His eyes fluttered open. He looked around in shock. "Where are we? It looks really different than where we were before..."

They rose off the ground slowly and brushed the dirt off their clothes. "We're not supposed to be here...This is not how it was supposed to turn out..." she murmured to herself sadly.

"What are you talking about, Mary?" Akira asked, overhearing her words.

The poor girl was at wit's end with everything, with every doll that tried to come at her, with every statue that was out to kill her. With Akira always trying to put her welfare over his own when he didn't even know what she was. With her rose for being fake. For Guertena for creating her and unknowingly trapping her in a world of her own hell. For everything that held her back. "I...I don't understand..." Tears welled up in her eyes and her nine-year old fists balled up tightly. "Why...? Why is it always like this...?" she choked back a sob.

"Mary...?" He reached for her shoulder but she shoved his warmth away.

"It's not supposed to be like this!" She shouted. "I'm-I'm supposed to leave and be free and make new friends! I'm supposed to escape here with no problem! I..." Her cries died down. "I can't do that to Akira..."

"What are you talking about?" He asked, oblivious to her words.

"You don't know the truth about me, do you? And yet...and yet you still risk your life for me! You don't even know me!" She cried angrily at him.

"Well...of course I do," he answered calmly. "I don't need to know you to know that you need my help."

"NO! That's not what I meant! You...You don't know _what_ I am!" Her shoulders trembled uncontrollably with each word.

"What do you mean?"

She swung around with the rose gripped tightly in her hand, so tight that the thorns punctured her hand skin and red paint dripped from her wounds. "_I'm not real_!"

Her words echoed throughout her fabricated crayon words. It shook the ground with fury and cracked through its dimensions. For a moment, the ground shook and then halted to a stop. "I'm not real...I'm not human, Akira...my father...Guertena...he created me..."

Akira watched her, his eyes wide with shock, as the little blonde girl fell to her knees. Her cerulean eyes were hid by her bangs. "You mean you're just a painting? In this world?"

She held out her rose to him. "It's fake..." He took it from her bleeding hand and cradled its petals. They were plastic. Wordless, he placed her flower down in front of her. "I lied to you. I...I just wanted to make a friend. I thought, that maybe, just maybe, I'd be able to escape with you. But that won't happen unless I take someone else's place..."

She didn't hear a word from him. She assumed that he hated her for lying to him and leading him on like that, or he was terrified of her because she was an equivalent to those statues that threatened them or those half-women-half-painting things that chased them. But instead, she felt a hand caress her chin and bring it upwards.

She met his eyes for the first time. "That can't be true," he said firmly. She struggled to keep his steady gaze.

"How is it not? My skin is paper, my color is from paint...My heart is fabricated..." she said.

"That may be true, but you're a real as any other young girl. How can you say that you're not real? You have emotions. You cry, you laugh, you do everything a normal human does. You saved me. There's no way a painting would do that." He pointed to her heart. "Mary, you may not be real, but you're still my friend."

She stifled a sniffle. "What does that mean?"

"It means I don't give a damn." She looked up at him with renewed hope. "Painting or not, I'm gonna find a way outta here with you. And then...And then we'll got get some ice cream, just like I promised!"

* * *

**A/N: There you are, my patient readers. Another chapter. Apologies if I spelled the artist's name wrong.**

**OHH and one more thing: There's been an update on Ib! It's Ib version 1.04, and it features two new endings and a new dungeon play through. Download it. Now.**


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